The Oddschecker Guide to the 2018 Australian Open in Melbourne

Our comprehensive guide to the 2018 Australian Open which will be held in Melbourne, with history and information about the tournament, plus the best betting tips and odds for all of the teams taking part.

Held annually over the last fortnight of January, the Australian Open is the first major Grand Slam tournament of the professional tennis calendar each year, ahead of the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. Featuring the very best tennis players in the world, winning the Australian Open always brings great prestige to those who achieve victory.

The tournament boasts a rich history dating back to 1905, when it was first known as the Australasian Championship, then the Australian Championship in 1927, before becoming the Australian Open since 1969. The Australian Open is hosted at the Melbourne Park tennis venue, which incorporates the Rod Laver Arena, Hisense Arena, and Margaret Court Arena, along with numerous show courts; all within the spectacular Melbourne Sports and Entertainment Precinct, on the banks of the River Yarra.

Up until 1988 tournaments were played on grass surfaces, which were replaced by a green coloured Rebound Ace hard surface. After 2007, these were also replaced with the distinctively blue Plexicushion surface. The Australian Open was also the first Grand Slam tournament to feature indoor play, with the retractable roofs at the three primary courts.

AUSTRALIAN OPEN FORMAT

The most popular events at the Australian Open are always the Men’s and Women’s Singles, which often attract some of the biggest attendances in tennis for key matches at the Melbourne Park venues, plus great interest internationally, with live coverage broadcast throughout the world.

The tournament begins with four qualifying rounds, narrowing the field of competition down to 128 competitors for the Round One draw. Head to head, players compete to progress through from Round One, Round Two, Round Three, and Round Four, before the best eight reach the Quarter Finals. Competition then gets even fiercer, through the Semi Finals and to the ultimate pairing in the Final.

AUSTRALIAN OPEN FINAL

Rodney Heath was the winner of the very first Men’s Singles title in 1905, defeating fellow Australian, Albert Curtis, at the Warehouseman’s Cricket Ground venue of the first final. The Women’s Singles were first held in 1922, with Margaret Molesworth winning an all Australian final against Esna Boyd.

During the 1960s and still in the amateur era, Roy Emerson overshadowed his iconic Australian compatriot, Rod Laver, by winning the tournament six times in the space of seven years. Over recent years in the professional era, Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic has greatly enjoyed his visits to Melbourne, winning the Australian Open six times since 2008. The 2017 Men’s champion was Roger Federer, with the Swiss star landing his 18th Major Singles title and his fifth at the Australian Open.

Iconic Australian player Margaret Court dominated the Women’s Singles tournament, with a phenomenal record of eleven Australian Open title between 1960 and 1973. Considered to be the greatest female player of all time, one of the key Melbourne venues is named in her honour. In the modern era, Serena Williams won the first of her seven Australian Open titles in 2003, beating her sister Venus. Coincidentally, she is the reigning champion, with Serena also victorious against Venus in the 2017 final between the two sisters.

AUSTRALIAN OPEN TROPHIES

The victorious Men’s Singles tournament winners are awarded the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup; a beautifully crafted trophy named after Norman Everard Brooks, an Australian player who was born in Melbourne and who won three Grand Slam singles titles between 1907 and 1914. For the Women’s Singles title at the Australian Open the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup is awarded, named in honour of Daphne Akhurst Cozens; winner of five singles Grand Slam titles, who tragically died aged just 29 in 1933 during a complicated pregnancy.

AUSTRALIAN OPEN BETTING

Betting on tennis and particularly the Grand Slam tournaments is more popular than ever before, with bookmakers offering a wide range of markets during the 2018 Australian Open. Amongst the key markets for bettors are Head to Head, Set Betting, and of course, those keen to place their bets and predict the eventual Tournament Winner. For those following the action live and in more detail, punters can also focus their bets on how many games or sets will be won and lost, with in-play markets during matches.

AUSTRALIAN OPEN TIPS

As the opening Grand Slam tournament of the tennis season, the 2018 Australian Open is already generating great interest amongst bookmakers and bettors alike, and at Oddschecker, we’re offering daily betting tips and details throughout the first half of the tournament, along with odds comparisons and analysis of all the key markets, plus in-depth and data-driven previews of all the semi-finals and finals.

The leading question in the Women’s Singles is whether Serena Williams can repeat her feats of 2017, after beating her sister Venus in final. Nevertheless, there will be fierce competition for the 2018 Australian Open title amidst a strong field of competitors, with Garbine Muguruza tipped to pose a serious challenge, with Karolina Pliskova, Simona Halep, and Maria Sharapova all expected to push hard for the Grand Slam victory in Melbourne.